NETWORKING: Networking is an art and a science. It is the ability to make contacts in many fields and cultivate those contacts into a useful resource for business and pleasure. Networking is as old as business itself, but has not been recognized as an important business resource until recent years. Anyone can develop a good network, but using it effectively and keeping it going requires a lot of time and effort.
NON-DISCLOSURE AGREEMENT (NDA): This is an agreement that you can use with any person you show an idea concept. The NDA or secrecy agreement as it is commonly known states that the person signing will not disclose the information to anyone else without your permission. This type of agreement does not always fully protect you against piracy of your idea, but it gives you something to work with in a legal sense that will establish the fact that the idea was pirated. It also acts to document the people to whom the invention was shown. You should be wary of any person who is reluctant to sign a secrecy agreement before viewing an idea. The secrecy agreement works well in conjunction with the meeting disclosure agreement.
OPM: OPM stands for Other People's Money. You should use OPM whenever possible. OPM is the only money that will get you past most of the financial hurdles that you will face as an inventor. If you use YOM (Your Own Money) when you should be using OPM, you may find yourself in considerable financial jeopardy.
OVERVIEW: The overview, or pre-proposal is a document of any size that generically outlines a business or product for investment purposes. The purpose of the overview is to open lines of communication with investors without giving away the product concept or business idea. As a pre-proposal it can give as many details as the inventor sees fit to reveal to gather investor interest. The pre-proposal approach is most often used when a patent has not been applied for yet or the idea is unpatentable and very easily pirated.
PATENT: A patent is a license from the government that allows the holder to prevent others from making, selling, or using his invention without compensation. The law calls patents "Intellectual Property" belonging to the inventor. A patent may be sold for profit or licensed to others for payments called royalties.
PATENT AGENTS: Patent agents must have all the same qualifications as patent attorneys, except they are not licensed to litigate any formal court proceedings in the event the patent is disputed in court or hand other legal remedies that may be called upon by the patent process.
PATENT APPLICATION: A patent application is the basic paperwork sent to the Patent and Trademark office to start a patent file with your name and invention. This should be done with and by a patent attorney! Doing it by yourself is foolish in my opinion, unless you happen to be a patent attorney.
PATENT ARTWORK: Patent artwork is a very specific set of drawing parameters under which every patent's artwork must be prepared. These are usually done by special patent draftsmen who do nothing but patent applications for a living. Patents are regularly rejected for unacceptable artwork, so it pays to have a pro do the art for your concept. Most patent attorneys have a patent artist that they regularly use.
PATENTS: Stacy V. Jones, patent columnist for The New York Times, once said, "A patent is society's reward for ingenuity." The patent system, created in 1790 by our first president, George Washington, is a concept borrowed from Europe and refined to allow the common man a chance to take advantage of his moment of inspiration. For the first time in history, the patent bill gave the inventor the intrinsic right to profit from his invention. The law calls patents "Intellectual Property" that can be sold in whole or in part, or can be licensed for use by others in return for payments called royalties.
PATENT SEARCH: The patent search is a systematic search of the records of the U.S. Patent Office to determine what other patents exist that may interfere with your ability to patent your idea. It is advisable to conduct a search through your patent attorney prior to actually paying for a full-blown application. A search usually costs about twenty percent of the patent fee you will have to pay for an actual patent to be issued. You can do your own preliminary patent search at most good public libraries.
PLANT PATENT: A plant patent is a patent that can be gotten for any newly invented, asexually reproduced plant. Various other new plant and animal life that is created in the lab is also capable of being patented. The bounds of patent law are continually being stretched to cover the advances in science.
PLASTIC (Types): There are many different types of plastics. Plastics are man-made (artificial) substances. Plastic comes in rods, sheets, tubes, blocks, etc. Each plastic has different qualities that make it well-suited for different uses. Plastic is a versatile material for many prototype and production applications. I suggest that a basic assortment of plastics be kept on hand in the workshop to help develop new ideas. Many "finds" are plastic (i.e., containers from many household items). These parts can often become the basic framework for many simple prototypes.
PRESENTATION ARTWORK: Presentation artwork is artwork of various types that you use to illustrate your concept. Presentation art should be professionally done. It can range from cut-away art of the guts of an invention to picture the invention in its final form being used by the end consumer.
PRESS COVERAGE: Press Coverage is any time your name or associated information (company name, product name, etc.) appears in any type of media. This includes newspapers, magazines, radio interviews, TV, etc. The press can play games with you or they can be your greatest asset, depending upon many factors. Always play it straight with the press and they usually won't hurt you. If you mislead them, you may find you'll regret it in the future. Making friends with the media is the best path to follow.
PRODUCT: A product is something you actually sell to the end users. It is the final stage in the development of an idea into an invention. If you sell your idea or invention at another stage of its development, then it can be considered your final product.
PRODUCT IMAGE: Product image is the "face" the actual invention has for its end users. The product image must portray the product in a specific light that the manufacturer wants the end user to perceive. If the product is a toy, it should be seen as fun. If it is a weapon, it should be seen as menacing and effective. If it is a household item, it should be seen as useful, labor-saving and easy to use. Developing a good product image can be hard, but once accomplished it can last forever, barring any radical bad press.
PROMOTION: Promotion is the effort undertaken to attain publicity and to get the name of the product and inventor known to as wide an audience as possible. Promotion can be very specific to a select group of end users or can be very general. Promotion often involves events that are structured to gain media attention. You will want to take every opportunity to promote yourself and your invention.
PROTOTYPE: A prototype is any form of an invention, any physical manifestation of the idea that is not the final product. Some prototypes that are prepared for presentations look like the final product but don't work worth a damn. Other prototypes that have been prepared for research and development don't look at all like the final product, but function like it. Inventions often are sold to manufacturers at the prototype stage.
PROTOTYPE PARTS COLLECTION: This is an inventor's grab bag of parts and data relating to those parts. This is a prime source of new product ideas. By having samples of various products and materials to experiment with, you can often build new product ideas with off-the-shelf parts. These parts will inspire different combinations and ideas for further combinations or custom parts made from the materials. Use the Request for Parts/Info letter included in chapter x to start a major prototype parts collection.
PUBLICITY: Publicity is the media activity that brings you, your company or your product to the attention of the public. Publicity can be good or bad, depending upon what is said or written. Bad verbal publicity is better than bad printed publicity, because people tend to forget the content and remember the product or inventor. Favorable printed publicity is the best to be hoped for because it is easy to circulate and will stay the same forever. You can get publicity in many ways, such as by accident, by planned press releases, by paid advertising, etc. In today's video society, you should try to get some televised exposure to promote your name and product.
RAISING CAPITAL: An art form that encompasses every phase of contact and communication with the overall effort directed at having an investment source put money into your project. You can raise capital from friends, family, strangers and institution. It can be done on an individual level and on a group level.
REDUCTION TO PRACTICE: Reduction to practice is a term used by the Patent Office to mean the inventor's continuing efforts to take his idea from a concept to a working, saleable invention. The ability to prove "reduction to practice" efforts is the main reason for complete and accurate documentation of an inventor's efforts in the development of his concept/device.
RESEARCH GRANTS: Money is available to inventors from various sources for the purpose of developing your product. These monies don't have to be repaid (in most cases), but if your research results are lousy and your product doesn't pan out, you may have some tough questions to answer.
RESOURCES: Resources are any physical material, person or piece of information that can help an inventor. Development of an individual resource data bank is crucial. I find the best method is to clip or photocopy articles from their source. Then put each article or piece of data in its own clear plastic page protector. These are then kept in looseleaf binders. This system is easy to reference and update as needed. Reading through your data resource book on a regular basis will help stimulate ideas from the vast cross-referencing your will do with the information in the book.
ROYALTIES: Royalties are the monies paid to an inventor for the sale, license or assignment of the patent rights to another individual or company.
SEED MONEY: Seed money is the initial capital that is generated to get a project off the ground. Most seed capital comes from the inventor and a close circle of family and friends.
SELF-PROMOTION: Self-promotion is your efforts in promoting yourself and your invention. Self-promotion is a never-ending process that is not for the shy or meek at heart. Self-promotion can make you a celebrity, if you're good at it. More importantly, it may sell lots of your products to investors, manufacturers and the general public. People believe in people, not products. The personal touch is what self-promotion is all about. Self-promotion includes writing articles, creating video spots, creating press events and generally getting your face and product out in front of the general public.
SERENDIPITY: The word was coined in 1754 by Horace Walpole to denote the faculty of findings things not sought for, the art of being able to profit from the unexpected. In a letter to a friend, Walpole explained that he had formed the word from the title of a fairy story, "The Three Princes of Serendip." It seems that the princes of the title were always making discoveries of things they were not looking for. This realization by accident has played an important part of many of history's most important inventions. Other terms have been coined to express the same concept. One of the most recent and expressive is "synergy," or the mixing of unrelated forces to create a new direction for action. Whatever it is called, inventors have always used, and always will use, this powerful creative force to shape the future.
SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION (SBA): The Small Business Administration is part of the U.S. Department of Commerce. This agency was designed to help small business get finances and give them guidance. In reality, it can do very little for your financial needs. Sometimes an SBA loan can be arranged, but it is rare in the case of an invention.
STEPPING-STONE TECHNIQUES: Stepping-stone techniques are the actions that you can take to move from one level of your career to the next. These techniques involve the use of one current situation or ability to act as a stepping-stone to the next situation or ability. You can use many different phases of your project's development to step into other areas that are income producing careers. See chapter X for more about Stepping-Stone techniques.
THOMAS REGISTERTM: Thomas Register of American Manufacturers is a 30 volume directory that is a major resource for inventors. It is a compendium of the nation's industrial resources. Almost every material or service that is available from industrial America is listed in the Thomas Register. I recommend that you buy a set (about $240) or locate a set at the public library. Most people find that just leafing through the books inspire ideas for new inventions based upon the incredibly diverse technologies that can be found within the covers. The Register is also a basic resource for getting printed information on any industrial process. Many manufacturers have extensive printed information on their area of expertise available at no charge. And most of these companies have toll-free 800 numbers to facilitate inquiries. Many manufacturers will supply, upon request, samples of many of their products. Thomas Register is a great resource for collecting sample parts for a prototype parts collection.
TIME LINES: Time lines are linear diagrams of the time flow in relation to how a project will be accomplished. They can be graphic or be a simple spreadsheet. They can be of several configurations and complexities. Investors appreciate time lines, because they indicate when their money will be spent in relation to when profits are estimated. Time lines are the easiest of estimates and projections to do, but are rarely as accurate as you might wish they were. Basic time lines should reflect worst-case scenario. This gives a project leeway and insures a realistic time frame.
TRACK RECORD: A track record is simply your credentials that you have attained, which includes your background as it relates to your present endeavor, prior inventions, current work on an invention, a resume, any letters of reference, published articles, accomplishments and experience.
UTILITY PATENT: A utility patent is a patent on any device based upon the function of the device, not its shape or appearance. The Utility Patent has a life of 17 years from its date of issue. A utility patent is the basic patent that everyone thinks of when using the term patent.
VENDORS: Vendors are sources for manufactured parts or services. Sometimes vendors are OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturers), but this doesn't necessarily have to be the case. A vendor may be a middleman or distributor for a product or service that is not available through any other source. Some vendors are exclusive representatives of companies that do not deal with the public or are located in other countries.
WITNESS STAMP: A witness stamp is a stamp that goes on all documentation of your ideas for the purpose of having someone date and witness your idea for maximum protection.
